Solar eclipses are a rare phenomenon that everyone should have the opportunity to explore in depth. This article describes two programs developed by a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) outreach center with the goal of bringing the excitement of eclipses to all learners. The STEM outreach center collaborated with local…

This paper describes the formation of a circumzenithal arc for the purpose of teaching light and optics. A circumzenithal arc, an optic formation rarely witnessed by people, is formed in this study using a water-filled cylindrical glass illuminated by sunlight. Sunlight refracted at the top and side surfaces of the glass of water is dispersed into…

Though school is out for the summer, ninth- and tenth-grade students at Union Intermediate High School are burning off energy playing a game of tag on the soccer field. But that is not all they are doing. They are also synthesizing and applying key chemistry concepts they have just learned related to the conditions of the early solar system. They…

For many years, the planet Mars was nothing more than a little red dot in a sea of stars and a blur in many science classrooms. Recent focus on the planet, however, has led to incredible teaching opportunities, such as the Mars Student Imaging Project (MSIP) facilitated by Arizona State University's Mars Education Program. The MSIP curriculum…

The project described here involved the design, implementation, and evaluation of an upper level, undergraduate elective course for science majors. Specific course goals were to help students gain an appreciation of the interdisciplinary nature of astrobiology, understand key ideas in astrobiology, and develop the skills necessary to communicate…